[courtesy of Blog for America]

Washington Post columnist David Ignatius goes to Afghanistan on a US sponsored trip and, lo and behold, winds up believing all the "good news".  He writes about it in the Washington Post and, feeling good about all his learned observations, goes on The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer.  That's where he runs into:

...Barnett Rubin—someone who actually knows something about Afghanistan. Rubin’s perspective was informed by decades of scholarship focused on the country and extensive travel and work there, including over the course of the last five years—not a pop-in and pop-out hosted by U.S. Government media relations professionals with a message to sell. Watching Rubin review Ignatius’s commentary was like observing a fresh chunk of gristly brisket being put through a meatgrinder. Rubin was polite, but in the end, Ignatius was reduced to a bloody mass on the counter.

Visit Harper's Magazine for the full story.

Danny
Communications Director

[courtesy of The California Majority Report]

California Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez will travel to Iowa this weekend to campaign for Senator Hillary Clinton.

Nunez, the first major elected official in California to support the New York Senator's candidacy, will represent Clinton at "The Iowa Brown & Black Forum" in Des Moines. The Forum is the nation’s only presidential forum in which all candidates have the opportunity to answer essential concerns of African-Americans and Latinos. All eight Democratic presidential candidates will participate.

The two hour-long forum will begin at 8:00 pm ET on Saturday, December 1. It will be moderated by Michele Norris, host of National Public Radio’s "All Things Considered," and Ray Suarez, senior correspondent for PBS’s "The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer."

Panel members will be Dr. Juan Andrade Jr., President of US Hispanic Leadership Institute; Angel F. Gonzalez Irizarry, Vice Chair for State of Iowa's Commission of Latino Affairs, Adrien K. Wing, Professor of Law, University of Iowa; and Dr. Benjamin Chavis, Hip Hop Summit Action Network President and CEO. Details on the event can be found here.

Nunez will meet with Iowa voters and campaign with Senator Clinton in Des Moines before and after the forum.

The 2008 Iowa Caucus will be held January 3, 2008.

by Sheri Divers [courtesy of Blog for America]

In conjunction with the release of former his new book "The Assault on Reason," former Vice President Al Gore will be making additional TV appearances this week. Below is a list of shows and air times. Please double check your local listings and tune in!

Tuesday, May 29th

Newshour with Jim Lehrer on PBS
Eastern:  7:00pm
Central:  6:00pm
Pacific:   7:00pm

Countdown with Keith Olbermann on MSNBC
Eastern:   8:00pm
Central:  7:00pm
Pacific:  5:00pm

Wednesday, May 30th

Early Show on CBS
Eastern:  7:00am
Central:  8:00am
Pacific:  7:00am

Thursday, May 31st

Early Show on CBS
Eastern: 7:00am
Central: 8:00am
Pacific: 7:00am